[Snotrocket]

So I have a hydraulic leak on my tractor. The leaking oil seems to be dripping off my steering sector gear. Fluid leaks drive me crazy.

I fished around behind the service cover thinking maybe the hydraulic hose I just put on was leaking a little but it wasn't. It was just as clean as when I put it on.

Are the oil tanks known to crack and leak? Does a pump ever give up the ghost and start leaking?

I'm going to get in there with my pressure washer tomorrow after I mow and clean everything off so I can get a better idea of where it's coming from I'm just looking for a little head start on the diagnosis. :mrgreen:

 

[Bart]

The hose from the pump to the TCV often rubs against the sector gear and gets chewed up so you might want to start there.

 

[dbeiter]

Hey Snot, I have had several of the plastic tanks start leaking on me.. Take a gander where the battery sits, if you don't have the battery secured tight the vibration will wear down the plastic tank and the oil will leak up through the "battery tray"...

 

[Snotrocket]

The hose from the pump to the TCV often rubs against the sector gear and gets chewed up so you might want to start there.

I just replaced that very hose last weekend. It's not coming from there. Thanks though. I was at a friends house last weekend and he had 4-5 of those hoses and they all had the same wear point on them. That's why mine needed to be replaced actually.

Hey Snot, I have had several of the plastic tanks start leaking on me.. Take a gander where the battery sits, if you don't have the battery secured tight the vibration will wear down the plastic tank and the oil will leak up through the "battery tray"...

I just had my battery out on Wednesday when I moved my electric fuel pump. I didn't have any oil leakage underneath the batter.

Wherever it's leaking from it's running down and right off the steering sector gear. :think: :think: :think:

 

[Hydriv]

Loose clamp on the J-hose feeding the pump.

 

[Snotrocket]

Well the hose feeding the pump wasn't loose on the pump side. I gave it 1 more turn on the clamp just to be sure. I mowed with it today and there's a good 4-5 tablespoons of oil on a piece of cardboard I slid over the deck.


What's involved in removing the tank? Take out the battery and it just pops off the hose that feeds into the bottom of it?

 

[Hydriv]

Welcome to our forum, Snotrocket.

Take some time checking over the abundant Tech Library we have.

You can find the PIN of your tractor on a metal plate riveted to the dash tower and that will allow you to going into the Parts Manual section/Tractors Onan Powered or Kohler Powered and find the correct PDF. If you click on the red icon, the PDF will open for to reveal pictorial diagrams that show how your tractor is assembled. That way, you will be able to see both ends of the J-hose along with which parts need to be removed in order to remove the reservoir.

Hope his helps. :thumbsup:

 

[dbeiter]

Removing the tank is an utter and complete Biatch!!... Once you do it once, you will get the hang of it and then it won't be AS bad, but it isn't a fun project... Good luck :thumbsup:

 

[Snotrocket]

Tom I hate you. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


Yeah I've read the manual back to front a few times. I was hoping for a shortcut/testimonial I guess.

 

[Nutcase446]

Now that was funny.
Chuck, A leak like that is a pain because from the time you pressure wash it till you get into the garage it can be hard to find the source of the leak. I like to keep a can of starting fluid for this purpose. Spray the wet area. The start fluid instantly cleans and drys it. Have a good light handy and maybe one of those mirrors on a stick. Start where the drip is falling to the floor and work up.
By the way, I have a nice Massey Ingersoll for you that doesn't leak any hydraulic fluid. It does weep a little engine oil through the grenade hole in the block.....

 

[skiveller]

Rear main seal?

 

[mikebramel]

1 oz of UV dye is $4.99 at Carquest.
A 3x AA LED Black light is $17 on Amazon

 

[Snotrocket]

Well after careful inspection this weekend it appears the leak is dripping off the bottom of my pump. Everything else checks out. The bottom of the oil tank was bone dry.

Looks like I'm going to be in the market for a new one. :thumbdown:

 

[CASE 220/4]

If I could convince Parker to send me a new shaft for the pump I have here then I would give it to you. The pump is practically brand new. Parker says the cost of the shaft is about the same cost of another pump and that these "tiny" pumps are basically throw away pumps and are not worth rebuilding. I got the pump in a box of freebies with the engine I bought for my 220 last year. The pump must have been plumbed backwards and the key sheered right off the shaft and took a chunk or the shaft with it.

 

[Bill.H]

Snot, can't you just replace the seals?
Or:
Get Brad's pump - Given the price of a new pump, I'd be tempted to just weld the key in there (or weld the lovejoy half on) and use it for 10-20 years. I mean, if the practically new pump is useless anyway, why not try it?

 

[Hydriv]

Why screw around with an old, worn pump when a brand new one can be had for a little over two hundred bucks? The front seal in a pump often fails because of excess wear in the bearing surface directly behind the seal. You cannot do anything about that surface because it's not a replaceable part. They just bore the aluminum casting and slide the pump shaft through it. The casting is the bearing. Pumps are a "wear item". The pumps in these tractors are cheap compared to many other pumps out there that cost in the thousands. As Parker-Hannifin pointed out, it just isn't cost-effective to try and rebuild these pumps.

 

[Bill.H]

Why screw around with an old, worn pump when a brand new one can be had for a little over two hundred bucks?

Because you may not have an extra $200+ right now; a free or $20 repair that lasts 5 years is a good deal - if it goes longer it's a bargain.

 

[Hydriv]

Why screw around with an old, worn pump when a brand new one can be had for a little over two hundred bucks?

Because you may not have an extra $200+ right now; a free or $20 repair that lasts 5 years is a good deal - if it goes longer it's a bargain.

If a pump is leaking out the front seal, then 99 times out of a 100, it's because the bearing is worn and the wobbling shaft destroyed the seal. OK.....put a new seal in and see how long it takes before that seal is toast thanks to the wobbling shaft. Now...you've just pissed away the $20.00 you mentioned plus you have to remove the engine once again, drain the system and pull the pump. Now what? Another new seal? Or do we gamble on some used pump off of e-bay for $75.00 that has been in some tractor for who knows how long? And if it costs $90.00 total for it to arrive at your house and you only get one year out of it before it either starts leaking or it won't run your tiller due to it being incapable of generating 2200 PSI...... then you now have $110.00 invested into this problem and the only thing you have to show for all of this is your new-found skill at removing the engine, draining the system and extracting the pump from your tractor. :sidelaugh: By this time, a new pump begins to look pretty inexpensive.

e-Bay offers no protection to Buyers on such purchases. As long as the pump works upon arrival, the rest is Buyer Beware. No Seller can guarantee a used pump and just because the tractor moved forward and backward before he pulled it apart means nothing. The pump only has to generate 800 PSI tops to make that happen on level ground but you need 2200 PSI to run a tiller effectively.

 

[Bill.H]

If a pump is leaking out the front seal, then 99 times out of a 100, it's because the bearing is worn and the wobbling shaft destroyed the seal. OK.....put a new seal in and see how long it takes before that seal is toast thanks to the wobbling shaft.

If it lasts 5 years, it's not a bad deal.

I didn't mention anything about ebay, I was referring to:

I would give it to you. The pump is practically brand new.

That's not an old used part. If the keyway can be made usable, he's got a fix for just the cost of a bit of time.
If you have the money, a new part is almost always the better choice. Again, if the $200+ is not laying around collecting dust, sometimes you don't have a choice.

 

[gator_rider2]

Pressure outlet fitting o'ring on pump most likely place for leak because high pressure and first to get heat from oil this shrink o'ring heat transfer along aluminum very fast. Once you get line sight at this fitting even with use mirror and small light be easy to find location leak. Hold Deck hydraulic lever up are down so there be pressure on pump. One hand hold light one mirror one move lever lol.